Candor: 46% of 7,000 companies are hiring, 21% are laying off, 32% froze hiring

46% of more than 7,000 companies are still hiring during the pandemic, while 21% are laying off workers and 32% have frozen hiring, according to a new report on crowdsource data from Candor, which helps tech workers negotiate salaries. Indeed.com has also come up with new data on job postings.

These reports rely on what employees are reporting about hiring, layoffs, and job freezes, and so they offer a real-time look at the impact of the coronavirus on the economy.

Overall, 42.5% of companies in business-to-consumer (B2C) markets are laying off people, and only 36.6% of companies hiring are B2C.

Within tech, there are 62% more companies hiring than firing, as video conferencing companies like Zoom have seen a boom. 75% more companies are hiring than firing n shipping and logistics. In virtual learning, there are four times more companies hiring than firing. In video games there are 10 times more video game companies hiring than firing. And in biotech, 3.7 times more companies are hiring than firing.

Among those freezing are industries such as marketing, advertising, public relations, education, e-commerce, and marketplaces.

In general consumer-facing companies, 10% to 20% of companies are laying off people. Travel and airline companies have taken a big hit. Apparel and footwear companies have had 2.5 times more layoffs than hires.

Indeed reports that the number of postings in software development is down 25.9%; hospitality and tourism is down 62.9%; childcare is down 52.4%; arts and entertainment is down 46.7%; banking and finance is down 35.8%; loading and stocking is down 34.9%; nursing is down 23.7%; and pharmacy postings are down 15.3%. Indeed said in March 2020, there were 30.8% fewer job postings than in March 2019.

Regional differences

Above: Hiring bright spots.

Image Credit: Candor

About 40% of the companies still hiring are in the U.S. 27.7% of U.S. companies are laying off people. In the United Kingdom, 41.4% of companies are hiring, while 21.7% are laying off.

The Bengaluru region of India has had strong job growth, and 48.1% of companies in the San Francisco Bay Area are still hiring, even as the cities have all transitioned to remote work. About one in five companies in Silicon Valley are laying off workers. San Diego, California; Cambridge, Massachusetts; and Paris, France have more companies hiring than freezes or layoffs.

By contrast, only 36.1% of companies in New York are still hiring, as New York has been especially hard hit. Other places having a tough time: 31.2% of Toronto companies are hiring, and 29.2% of Houston companies are hiring.

The slowdown has hit worldwide. New Zealand has been praised for its COVID-19 response and relatively few cases, but job postings are dramatically down in that country. Australia, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Ireland have all seen postings drop more than 40% as of April 10 on Indeed.com.

Above: Job posting declines by country.

Image Credit: Indeed

More than 60% of the companies hiring have 10 or fewer employees, and more than 50% of those hiring are 50 people or under.

Larger private companies are using the opportunity to “rightsize,” or reducing burn rates and extending runway.

Both private and public sectors are experiencing the same rate of layoffs. But public companies are hiring at a lower rate than private companies. 42.68% of private companies are hiring, versus 31.85% of public companies.

Job seeker takeaways

Above: Public and educational companies are hiring less now.

Image Credit: Candor

As mentioned, the data show that smaller and younger companies are hiring more. Public and educational companies are hiring less. So if you’re looking for a job, your best bet is at a small startup, where salaries may not be large but there are lots of companies looking for talent to take on incumbents. Government jobs are also expanding now.

For job seekers, Candor said, “There’s no denying that economies across the world are being turned upside down—and this is undeniably affecting the state of hiring. There is no industry or location untouched by the pandemic, so job seekers have to adapt to the changing times.”

Candor added, “Consider who’s hiring and who’s not, and target your efforts there. Look for industries that have long-term growth potential beyond the pandemic. A company selling face masks might do well in the short term, but companies that are invested in long-term visions with a skew towards tech, healthcare, or education will be the safest bet.”

The report used user-generated data.